Initial situation

• STRATEC uses the Windchill PLM system for development and design. SAP S/4 HANA is in use as their ERP system.
• The existing coupling of the PLM and ERP systems only partially covered their requirements.
• The drawings were not available in ERP or were only partially available.
• The material master setup through the interface was insufficient, so that a lot of rework had to be done.

Customer requirements

• Increase quality of master data
• Minimize wait times and effort in the management of master data files
• Optimize revision management
• Support for Windchill MPMLink functions
• Compatibility with SAP S/4 Hana

Implementation

• The interface facilitates the automatic creation or modification of material masters, document information records, and bills of materials.
• The transfer is process-driven from the Change Management Workflow.
• Master data maintenance can also be controlled or triggered via the menu as needed.
• All data is validated before transmission, assuring a minimum level of quality.

Customer benefits

• Thanks to the implemented validations and the user-friendly operation of the interface, the number of people who can transfer materials to ERP could be increased and with it waiting times and expenses minimized.
• The need for support by key users has been reduced.
• Various validations detect errors before a material is transferred to ERP. The user interface's error messages are much easier to understand by the user than the messages sent directly by the ERP.
• An interface-populated material class requiring historic data could be introduced into ERP, which gives STRATEC great advantages in using their revision process.
• The ability to synchronize lifecycle and cross-plant material status help to make release control more exact and transparent.